Thoughts
on the film by Neil Jordan
A new film by Neil Jordan
is always going to be an event for me; even if turns out to be one of his
occasional excursions into the conventional world of mainstream Hollywood. Greta
(2018) feels more in line with Jordan's other, often flawed studio endeavours, We're
No Angels (1989), Interview with the Vampire (1994), In Dreams (1999), The
Brave One (2007), etc, lacking from the outset the more distinctive spark and invention found in his more personal efforts, such as The Company of Wolves
(1984), The Butcher Boy (1997), Breakfast on Pluto (2005) and Ondine (2009). Jordan's
Hollywood excursions are often massively compromised and far from his greatest
works and Greta is no exception.
While not as visually
stunning or thematically rich as the similarly overdone psychodrama In Dreams, it's
not as compromised or hysterical either. It's not as polished or prestigious as
Interview with the Vampire, but it's also less prosaic. And unlike his last
Hollywood production, the anonymous revenge fantasy The Brave One, it does at
least feel like a Neil Jordan film, littered
as it is with his usual references to fairy-tale iconography, broken families,
mirror symbolism and the perspective of lost girls. In its collision between
coming of age narrative and psycho-drama it hints a little towards his greatest
work, The Butcher Boy, with some apparent throwbacks found in the repeated use
of the song "Where Are You?" (made famous by Frank Sinatra), a mid-narrative
dream sequence and the image of the title character dancing-childlike around
the kitchen after carrying out a violent attack.
Greta [Neil Jordan, 2019]:
While nowhere near the
same level as Jordan's best work, I still found a lot to like here. The
original screenplay was written by Ray Wright; a screenwriter known for
Hollywood horror remakes like Pulse (2006) and The Crazies (2010). In
re-writing the screenplay before filming, Jordan creates a strange tension
between the two voices of the text; one that in a way mirrors the tension
between the protagonist and antagonist of the film itself. It's not difficult
to see Wright as Frances (the naive youngster defined by her engagement with
social media, casual dialog and attempts to be seen as good or virtuous), with
Greta herself becoming kind of avatar for Jordan; an older, seemingly eccentric
European, with a love of classical music and an air for the tragic that points
towards something violent.
When Greta uses the tools
of Frances's generation to ensnare the young woman, it feels like Jordan
himself is taking something current from Wright's original story and using it
against the modern audience. If the film is flawed in any way (and it is) it's
in the weak or under-developed characterisations. Protagonist Frances is
defined only by stock familial clichés and denied any kind of emotional
catharsis, while we never learn enough about the villainous Greta for her to
ascend to the same level as other iconic screen monsters such as Annie Wilkes
and Hannibal Lecter. That said, it's a beautifully shot film that makes the
most of its Dublin-doubling-as-New-York locations, and one that finds Jordan
indulging a lot of his preferred visual quirks and thematic interests.
